Her mother died when she was an infant. She became a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of King Henry VIII sometime after 11 June 1509. She was in constant attendance upon the Queen and was allocated her own rooms at Court on a permanent basis.[5] It is thought that Maud may have named her daughter Catherine after Catherine of Aragon, who was also made godmother to the child.

Maud was a very intelligent and well-educated woman; she was also fluent in French. Queen Catherine held her in such high regard that Maud was entrusted with the organization and control of the Royal Court School which was established for the education of the King's family and the daughters of the Queen's closest friends.[6] Lady Parr had already taught her children to read and write when they were small children, but it was at this Royal Court school that Catherine and her sister Anne would have been taught French, Latin, philosophy, theology, and the Classics.[6]

Maud had married Sir Thomas Parr, the eldest son of Sir William Parr and Elizabeth FitzHugh, in 1508 when she was about 16 years old. He was the Sheriff of Northamptonshire, master of the wards and comptroller to the King. Maud and Thomas had three surviving children. Although Thomas Parr inherited properties in the north including Kendal Castle in Westmorland, the Parr's resided at Parr House which was located on The Strand in London. By the time Sir Thomas had inherited the castle, it was in need of repair and eventually became derelict. Parr and his wife were courtiers and stayed close to court. Thomas Parr died of the sweating sickness on 11 November 1517, leaving Maud a widow at the age of 25. She chose not to remarry for fear of jeopardizing the huge inheritance she held in trust for her children.[5] She carefully supervised the education of her children and studiously arranged their marriages.[7]

Before the birth of Catherine, Maud gave birth to a son shortly after her marriage to Sir Thomas. The happiness was short lived as the baby quickly died and his name was never known. After the birth of their third child, Anne, Maud again became pregnant c. 1517, the same year of Thomas' death. The baby was either lost through a miscarriage, stillbirth, or death in early infancy. Whatever the cause, it must have been somewhat of a relief as the baby came at a most difficult time.[8]